Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. What are some examples of folktales, myths, or fairy tales that you have heard or read? What purpose do these stories serve?

Teaching Suggestion: The Girl Who Drank the Moon contains many examples of folktales, myths, and fairy tales from the imagined world in which the story takes place. Students are likely to know many examples of folk stories and may enjoy sharing their ideas in a class discussion. They may be uncertain about what cultural function these stories serve; the resources below can be used to fill in the gaps in their understanding. This will help prepare them to understand how the folklore in The Girl Who Drank the Moon develops both the novel’s setting and its themes.

• This 4-minute video from the Center for Teaching and Learning Mathematics offers an introduction to the forms and functions of folk stories.
• This 1-minute video offers brief but clear commentary on the function of folktales by author Carmen Agra Deedy.
• This article from Britannica Kids briefly defines folktales, myths, fables, and fairy tales.